Hay press and baler.



J. GERNIGAN.

HAY PRESS AND BALER.

APPLICATION mm APR.27, ms.

Patented Nov. 14, 1916.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

Patented Nov. 14, 1916.

4 SHEETSSHEET 2.

gnaw/whoa,

J. GERNIGAN.

HAY PRESS AND BALER.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 27. 1915.

J. GERNIGAN.

HAY PRESS AND BALER.

APPLICATION FILED'APR.27, 1915.

L205 U9U. Patented Nov. 14, 1916.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

J. GERNIGAN.

HAY PRESS AND BALER.

APPLICATION FILED APR-27, I915.

Patented Nov. 14,1916.

4 SHEEFSSHEET 4.

I \im lll @FFEQE.

JAMES GERNIGAN, 0F COPPERAS COVE, TEXAS.

HAY PRESS AND BALER.

Application filed April 27, 1915.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I. JAMns GERNIGAN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Copperas Cove, in the county of Coryell and State of Texas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Hay Presses and Balers, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to an improved apparatus for pressing hay and similar material into bales.

Among the objects of the invention might be mentioned, the provision of a plurality of chambers .inwhich the compression occurs through the medium of a single plunger, of a novel form of means for driving the plunger, preferably from an engine mounted on the apparatus, means to removably support blocks against which the hay is pressed, means to prevent undue expansion of the hay after compression and a special form of plunger to cooperate therewith, and to generally improve the construction of apparatus of this nature and provide a construction which is novel with respect to the details of construction, arrangement, and combination of the parts as embodied in the press illustrated in accompanying drawings.

Additional objects will appear hereinafter after a consideration of the description with said drawings.

In said drawings: Figure l'is a side elevation of the press; Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the press from the opposite side to Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an end view of the body of the press and its supporting wheels; Fig. 4 is an enlarged partial plan view of the press; Fig. 5

is a horizontal longitudinal sectional view of the press body; Fig. 6 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view of the press body; Fig. 7 is an enlarged cross-sectional view through the press body at the feed hopper; Fig. 8 is a cross sectional view on line 8-8 of Fig. 6; Fig. 9 is a fragmentary perspective view of the press body; Fig. 10 is a detail perspective view of one of the abutment blocks used; Fig. 11 is a detail perspective view of one of the abutment members for the blocks; Fig. 12 is a detail perspective view of the plunger; Fig. 13 is a detail perspeotive view of one of the hay retainers; Fig. 14: is a view of the same parts but showing them in a different position; Fig. 15 is a detail view of parts of the driving mechanism taken approximately on .line 5-15 of F 5 ig 1 is a tailpa tly Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 14, 1916.

Serial No. 24,184.

in elevation and partly in section of the clutch means of the driving mechanism; Figs. 17-and 18, respectively, are sectional views on the line 1717 and .1818 of Fig. 16, and Fig. 19 is a view showing the shifting lever and other parts of said clutch means.

. Referring specifically to the drawings, 1 designates a hollow elongated body or trunk which may be square in cross section and open at its ends as seen in Fig. 3. Said body 1 is preferably provided with wheels 2 but may be propelled in any suitable manner. As seen particularly in Figs. 4: and 6, the body 1 has a centrally disposed feed opening in its top wall surrounded on three sides by a hopper 3 to which leads a slightly inclined supply chute 4-. Within the trunk is disposed a suitably shaped reciprocable plunger 5. The spaces within the trunk 1 on opposite sides of the plunger may serve as compression chambers, as at A-and B and the single plunger serve to compress material in both. 7 1

At the outer. ends of chambers A and B, suitable removable abutment means is provided, which is shown in detail in Figs. 10 and 11. As appears particularly in Fig. 9, a plurality of registering openings 6 are providcd in the top and bottom in walls of the trunk adjacent the outer ends of the chambers which receive abutment retainers C (Fig. 11) having parallel arms? which extend. through the openings of both the top and bottom walls of the trunk and are bridged and connected by a handle 8 integral with the arms and disposed at the top of the trunk. On both sides of the trunk adjacent the ends and partly opening at the sides of chambers A and B are wide elongated openings 9 through which elements C are inserted and removed as well as square abutment blocks D which rest against the arms 7 of retainers C and against which the material is pressed. Grooves 10 may be provided in the blocks D to receive the arms 7.

WVithin the trunk at the inner ends of chambers A and B are provided abutment means to maintain material in pressed condition which means are in the form of independent devices E as will be seen upon reference to Figs. 5, 6, 13, and 14:. These devices E are disposed in vertical rows and each has a tang plate 11 through which may pass screws 12.01 other fastening means to secure the devices to the sides of the trunk. Also these devices have elements provided with material-retainer arms 13 integral with angle arms 14 which normally abut the plates 11 and are held in such relation by means of coil springs 15 fastened to the element and to the plate 11. Normally arms 13 extend at a right angle to the plates 11 so as to prevent expansion of material after compression but which during compression are adapted to be moved by the material and plunger out of such position, for instance to the position shown in Fig. 14 where plate 11 and arm 13 are in substantial alinement. In order to permitthe plunger 5 to move past the devices E, said plunger is preferably provided with slots 1.6 at its sides.

Extending laterally from the plunger 5 are arms 17 which may be integral therewith. Said arms 17 extend through and beyond elongated longitudinally extending slots 18 provided in the sides of the trunk. In contiguous relation with the exterior of the sides of the trunk, are slidable plates 19 adapted to maintain the slots 18 covered. Brackets 20 serve to mount the slides 19 and are secured to the trunk as by means of screws 21. Also said brackets 20 have angle flanges 22 in which is mounted a bearing rod 23 bridging the space between the same.

Arms 17 also extend through the slides 19 and directly bear on the rods 23. Extending from the arms 17, preferably integral therewith, are trunnion studs 24 on which are pivotally mounted pitmen 25 and fastened by means of nuts 25.

The pitmen and plunger are operated from any suitable source of power, preferably from an internal combustion engine as shown, at F. Suitably fastened against the exterior of the sides of trunk 1 and extending above the trunk, are standards or bars 25 bridged by a shaft 27 journaled therein. On the main shaft 28 of engine F is mounted a sprocket wheel 29 over which is trained a sprocket chain 30, which in addition is trained over a sprocket wheel 31 (see Figs. 16 and 17) turnably mounted on the shaft 27 In order to cause operation of the machine at proper times, suitable clutch means is employed to connect shaft 27 and sprocket wheel 31 so as to turn as a unit. To this end, a clutch member 32 is slidably mounted on a portion 33 of shaft 27 which is square or otherwise non-circular in cross section. The hub of sprocket wheel 31 is laterally en'- larged and provided with clutch teeth at 34 to engage clutch teeth at 35 on the member 32. A circumferential groove 36 is provided on the clutch member 32 and is en- 7 gageable by the bifuracted end 37 of a shiftto the exterior of the sides of the trunk. A second transverse shaft bridges the bearing bars 26 as at 42 and motion is imparted to said shaft as through the medium of a gear wheel or pinion 43 (see Fig. 2) mounted on shaft 27 meshing with a gear wheel 45 keyed to shaft 42. At the opposite end, shaft 42 has a second gear wheel keyed thereto and designated 45. Gear wheels 45 mesh with gear wheels 46, one disposed on each of opposite sides of the trunk and journaled on stub shafts 47 projecting outwardly from bars 26, as shown in detail in Fig. 5. The pitmen 25 previously referred to, are connected to gears 46 by wrist pins at 48. It might be mentioned that the bars 41 are bent outwardly as at 42 so as to' serve as guides for the slides 19.

A suitable form of plunger as shown at G is adapted to work in the opening surrounded by the hopper 3 in order to tamp or positively feed hay fed down chute 4 through said opening to the interior of the trunk for compression. Preferably the plunger G is operated from the transmission mechanism employed to reciprocate-the main plunger 5. In furtherance of this end, a sprocket wheel 49 is fastened to one of the gear wheels 46 so as to rotate therewith as a unit. Also a shaft is transversely arranged at the top of the machine as indicated by numeral 50 on which is keyed a sprocket wheel 51. A sprocket chain 52 is trained over the sprocket wheels 49 and 51 so as to impart motion from shaft 47 to shaft 50. An idler guide wheel 53 is pivotally mounted by a stud 54 on an arm 55 adjustably fastened to one of the bars 26 by means of a bolt 56. Chain 52 passes over this pulley 53 which serves to maintain the chain at the proper tension since its position may be varied through adjustment of arm 55 upon loosening of the nut of bolt 56. Bridging the bars 26 and 41 at their top, are cross bearing bars 57 and 58 which are fastened to said bars 26 and 41 by means of removable bolts or rods 59 extending completely across the trunk and through the bars 26, 41, 57, and 58 and beyond them receiving nuts 60. Spaced from the bar 58 is a similar bar 61 mounted on rods 59 and positioned thereon by means of nuts 62 of which a plurality is disposed against each side thereof. Shaft 50 is journaled in the bars 58 and 61 and beyond the bar 61 has removably fastened thereon by means of a set screw 63, a disk 64. Spaced from the bar 61 and fastened to the trunk through the medium of a foot 65, is a standard or bar 66 fastened against sliding move ment on one rod 59 by means of nuts 67 disposed on opposite sides thereof. Pivoted at 67 and eccentrically to the disk 64 is a link 68 in turn pivoted at 69 to a lever 70 pivoted at 71 to the bar 66. This lever, at its other end is pivotally connected by a bolt 72 to a stud 73 of the plunger G. A. cleat 74 is fastened by the bolt 72 and in addition by a bolt 7 5 to the lever 7 0. It will be noted that the stud 7 3 is reduced, upon reference to Fig. 4-, so that it may have a shoulder 7 6 to abut the under face of lever 7 0 to prevent move ment to an improper position and to always maintain the plunger in a substantially vertical position.

In operation, engine F is set in motion which through the medium of the gearing described reciprocates plunger G in a vertical plane so as to tamp or positively feed hay or other material fed down chute I, to the interior of the trunk. Also through the medium of the proper elements of said gearing, plunger 5 is reciprocated .so as to feed and pack or compress the hay or other material in the chambers A and B. In order to permit the plunger to pass the devices E, they have been provided with the slots 16. As the material moves past the devices E, it engages the arms 13 and swings them against the tension of the springs 15. However, when this material is packed, springs 15 restore arms 13 to normal position with the arms 13 in contact with plates 11 and with the arms 13 presenting a relatively wide abutment surface engaged by the material and preventing it from expanding to an undue extent. It is presumed, of course, that prior to such operation, members 0 have been located in the 0penings'6 and abutment blocks D inserted and disposed in abutting relation therewith so that the hay or other material will be compressed against said blocks. As previously mentioned, the elements 0 and D are readily inserted through the openings 9. After the bales have been compressed, elements C and D may be removed and the bale properly bound or tied in' the usual manner and either completely removed from the trunk or left in the trunk nearthe ends thereof and beyond the spaces or chambers A and B. It will be realized that through the provision of the clutch means on shaft 27 that the same may be readily shifted through manual operation of lever 38 to permit the engine F to run freely or to drive the apparatus. Further, it will be understood that the tension of chain 52 may be varied through the adjustment of wheel 53 and arm 55.

Since merely the preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described, it is to be understood that changes in the details of construction thereof may be resorted to within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a press, a compression chamber, a removable abutment plate therein for compressed material, said chamber having a wall provided with a plurality of openings therein, a removable abutment frame for said plate having abutment arms extending through said openings and said arms being joined by a handle portion disposed exteriorly of the chamber.

2. In a press, a chamber, movable therein, plunger, a lever,

a main plunger means to reciprocate said a tamping plunger carried by said lever, a link pivoted to said lever, a disk to which said link is pivoted and means to operate said disk through movement of said means.

3. In a press, a trunk having a chamber, a main plunger movable therein, bearing bars on said trunk, a shaft mounted on one of said bars, a gear wheel mounted on said shaft, a pitman connected to said gear wheel and to said plunger, a second shaft, said second shaft being mounted by said bars, a gear wheel on said shaft in mesh with said gear wheel, a third shaft, said third shaft being mounted by said bars, means to drive said third shaft, a gear wheel on said third shaft in mesh with the gear wheel on the second mentioned shaft, a third bar, a lever pivoted on said latter bar, a plunger carried by said lever, a link connected to said lever, a disk to which said link is pivoted, a shaft for said disk, and gearing means to drive said shaft through movement of the first mentioned gear wheel.

4. In a press, a main plunger, first, second, third, and fourth upstanding bars, one of said bars having a shaft fixed thereon, a gear wheel journaled on said shaft, a pitman pivoted to said gear wheel and to said plunger, a second shaft, said second shaft being journaled on said first and second bars, a gear wheel on said shaft in mesh with said gear wheel, means to drive said second shaft, transversely extending rods, one connected to the first and second bars and the other connected to the third and fourth bars, a fifth bar, said fifth bar bridging said first and third bars and fastened by said rods, a sixth bar, said sixth bar being parallel to the fifth bar and spaced therefrom, means on one of said rods to prevent displacement of the sixth bar, a shaft journaled in said fifth and sixth bars, means to drive'said latter shaft from the first mentioned gear wheel.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JAMES GERNIGAN.

Witnesses:

J. J. RIDDLE, M. A. SADLER.

(lopies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Gommissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

